Chandigarh: 30% complaints in UT pertain to estate office
Chandigarh's public hearings saw 757 grievances, mainly about property issues. The administration aims for prompt resolution through regular citizen interactions.
In a one-year review of public hearings, the Chandigarh administration reported that 757 citizens approached officials directly with grievances, with the Estate Office receiving the highest number of complaints — 30% of the total, followed by the municipal corporation at 20%, police at 15%, the revenue department and cooperative societies at 10% each, and the Chandigarh Housing Board at 5%. The remaining grievances were related to employment, education and traffic issues.
UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria had in October last year directed all officers to remain present in their offices every Wednesday from 10 am to 1 pm to personally address public grievances, with no other meetings scheduled during this time except in emergencies.
Deputy commissioner-cum-estate officer Nishant Kumar Yadav said most complaints pertained to property ownership transfers and building violations at the estate office. “We have resolved most of the complaints received in the past year,” he said, adding that the administration encourages more residents to come forward and avail the benefits of the public hearing.
Following Kataria’s instructions, the Citizen Interaction and Assistance (CIA) Branch was established at the DC office to ensure time-bound grievance redressal. Residents can meet the deputy commissioner every Wednesday between 11 am and 12 noon, while joint public hearings by the deputy commissioner and the senior superintendent of police are held every Friday from 11 am to 12 noon, supplementing individual hearings on Mondays and Wednesdays.
During the hearings, citizens raised issues ranging from unauthorised constructions and property transfers to misuse of buildings, senior citizen grievances and civic or policing matters.
Several residents expressed satisfaction with the administration’s prompt action.
Kasturi Devi, who approached the DC office regarding a property transfer, said, “Our issue was resolved within a month. The officials were responsive and cooperative.”
